Clampdown on pirate programs in Phuket

**Happyman** · 31-10-2009, 02:02 PM

URGENT WARNING

I have just returned from my office in Phuket and was suprised to find the building locked.

Phoned the company that I share the premises with and the boss appeared and unlocked the door from the inside !!

Their office was a hive of activity with half a dozen local pooter specialists going through their computers and backing every thing up before deleting the operating systems .

Yesterday a 'Hit Squad' authorised by the governor as part of his "Clean up Phukets Image" campaign and backed up by a heavy police presence, decended upon the Boat Lagoon and Royal Phuket Marina area, impounded all computers and checked for Pirated soft ware. Several companies have closed until they pay a fine of 500,000 Baht and install genuine software.

Today they are still working through the area( hence the panic in the office downstairs) and the word on the street is that the campaign will cover Phuket Town and then move on to Patong and other areas !

Although my laptop was bought new from the ACER dealer in Taiwan I was not given the software disk so to be on the safe side I took it home !!

Will add more info as it becomes available but this seems a lot more serious that the Music scam thing that happened a while ago.

**nedwalk** · 31-10-2009, 02:20 PM

pheww!! and i thought THAILAND was a dangerous place..good to see the nations finest takeing care of the true crims

**Begbie** · 31-10-2009, 02:23 PM

Originally Posted by Happyman

URGENT WARNING

Several companies have closed until they pay a fine of 500,000 Baht

Which will of course be passed on to Microsoft, the injured party.

**mobs00** · 31-10-2009, 02:25 PM

Happening all over in Chiang Mai too, started this week. Fines are in the millions so I've heard.

I'm sure all the cops doing the raids are using genuine software are their computers.

**Happyman** · 31-10-2009, 02:26 PM

The Hit squad has a lot of Microsoft nerds in it !!!

Saw and heard 2 of them discussing progress in the Boat Lagoon Bakery cafe this morning !!

**Stinky** · 31-10-2009, 02:35 PM

Originally Posted by Happyman

Although my laptop was bought new from the ACER dealer in Taiwan I was not given the software disk so to be on the safe side I took it home !!

Are they going to hit anyone with a pooter or only business's?

**Happyman** · 31-10-2009, 02:38 PM

From what I understand they are concentrating on registered companies.
Goin out to night with a mate who has been shut down and should know more tomorrow

**Happyman** · 31-10-2009, 02:42 PM

Originally Posted by nedwalk

pheww!! and i thought THAILAND was a dangerous place..good to see the nations finest takeing care of the true crims

Appreciate the humour Mr Ned but a 5000,000 fine and shutdown is not so funny

**Happyman** · 31-10-2009, 02:49 PM

^

Oops!

Typo

500,000 Baht

**BobR** · 31-10-2009, 03:01 PM

Throw a little bit of western corporate money at them and that Thai Love Thai thing seems to go down the toilet quite fast.

**slackula** · 31-10-2009, 03:08 PM

I hope they raid my office, I shall grin smugly from behind my MacBook, but I can imagine it will be a struggle to explain what Slackware Linux is to these muppets when they start looking at the desktops.

**Happyman** · 31-10-2009, 03:28 PM

Just had a phone call from my mate who was shut down. It appears that his wife (thai) has a brother in the hit squad police - cant help him 'cos the papers are already in City Hall but may be able to let it be known what and when other areas will be hit - she was talking to him today and he was saying that he will be away for a while at other police stations and wants her to look after his wife who just produced a rug-rat last week. She will ask him for contact numbers and dates at which station so she can keep in touch !

She is totally pissed off as she is a co- director in my mates company !

**natalie8** · 31-10-2009, 03:33 PM

TBH, does anyone in Thailand have real software, besides Microsoft itself and IBM? I don't even know where to get the real ones in Thailand.

**Butterfly** · 31-10-2009, 03:40 PM

seems like the Police is trying to explore new markets to squeeze,

I suspect the Jet Ski market is done,

they make it sound official, but I doubt it is

**melvbot** · 31-10-2009, 03:44 PM

Originally Posted by slackula

it will be a struggle to explain what Slackware Linux is to these muppets when they start looking at the desktops.

Hopefully some people will realise theres a useful free alternative to getting busted by the tech police. I dont hold much hope out though.

**Doggsy** · 31-10-2009, 05:06 PM

Originally Posted by BobR

Throw a little bit of western corporate money at them and that Thai Love Thai thing seems to go down the toilet quite fast.

i didnt think they were allowed to self love anymore because their messiah was shown to be a criminal and his disciples were banned?

**the dogcatcher** · 31-10-2009, 05:25 PM

Happyman, got any jobs in boating?

**Happyman** · 31-10-2009, 05:45 PM

^

Only when they f*ck up big time !
I handle Insurance claims

**zubber** · 31-10-2009, 07:37 PM

the old laid back laissez faireThailand is long gone ,shame

************************************************
The general meaning of Laissez-faire (English pronunciation: /ˌlɛseɪˈfɛər/ (

listen), French: [lɛsefɛʁ] (

listen)) is to allow events to take their own course, or to let people do what they choose. The term is a French phrase literally meaning "let it be" or "leave it alone".
The term is often used to refer to various economic philosophies which seek to minimize or eliminate aspects of government intervention. The term is seldom, but occasionally, used to refer to a political philosophy form of anarchism.

**Butterfly** · 31-10-2009, 07:41 PM

I find it hard to believe they can simply enter the office, ask the staff to leave so they can check the computers without any kind of evidence

definitely illegal, unless the police is involved and is running this as a scam

**mobs00** · 31-10-2009, 07:47 PM

^ Same as the music scam. They made money on that one and now moved on to a bigger and more profitable scam.

**Rural Surin** · 31-10-2009, 08:06 PM

Originally Posted by nedwalk

pheww!! and i thought THAILAND was a dangerous place..good to see the nations finest takeing care of the true crims

.........only if there's a profit motive behind it.

**Butterfly** · 31-10-2009, 08:20 PM

apparently, from some news link, the raids are carried after investigation and evidence provided internally by current or former employees or competitors or anyone with an agenda to fuck someone over

**peterpan** · 31-10-2009, 08:24 PM

Thai employees will fvck a non Thai employer every chance they get, makes them feel bigger I guess.

**BobR** · 31-10-2009, 08:32 PM

Originally Posted by Butterfly

apparently, from some news link, the raids are carried after investigation and evidence provided internally by current or former employees or competitors or anyone with an agenda to fuck someone over

In the USA those "software alliance" lowlifes actually take out advertisements in newspapers and magazines looking for disgruntled employees who want to strike back at their employer. I forget the exact wording but "get even" was part of it.

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